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Ohio State could have joined national title conversation

The SEC Championship pits No. 2 Alabama and No. 3 Georgia in what is essentially a national championship semifinal, and the Big 12's regular season closes with No. 18 Texas at No. 6 Kansas State.

Notice I didn't say Saturday features a great schedule of college football. We're missing the opportunity to argue whether Ohio State should have an opportunity to play for the national championship. The Buckeyes are ineligible because of sanctions stemming from players trading memorabilia for tattoos.

Instead, college football fans must settle for No. 14 Nebraska playing unranked Wisconsin, which finished third in its division behind Ohio State and similarly penalized Penn State. The Badgers finished just 7-5 and 4-4 in conference.

Fans aren't excited. As of early Friday afternoon, a ticket for the Big 10 Championship was selling for $19 on Stub Hub. The cheapest ticket for the SEC Championship costs $276.

The Buckeyes, if they had beaten Nebraska in the Big 10 Championship, would've had a decent argument to play for the national championship. Sure, the Big 10 was supermodel thin. But the Buckeyes would've joined Notre Dame as the only two schools among the 122 FBS programs to go undefeated.

To be fair, Notre Dame or the winner of the SEC Championship would probably easily handle Ohio State. The Buckeyes needed overtime to beat Purdue at home and Wisconsin, and they barely edged Michigan and Michigan State.

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Remember: Alabama walloped Michigan 41-14 to open the season.

Ohio State now must wait for its next opportunity to play in a high-level bowl game, which could come as early as next season. The Buckeyes have a strong coach (and recruiter) in Urban Meyer, and they return quarterback Braxton Miller, who should be a Heisman Trophy finalist.

Their schedule for next season includes a slate (Buffalo, San Diego State, California and Florida A&M) that should put them at 4-0 entering conference play. Their toughest game will come at Michigan to end the season, no one's idea of an impossible challenge.

The Big 10 needs Ohio State to be relevant. The conference could only add mediocre and financially desperate athletic programs in Rutgers and Maryland in the latest round of expansion. If the Buckeyes can maintain a perfect record, the Big 10 will be part of the national championship conversation.

That is, if they don't fall apart, as previous Meyer teams did at Florida. During his six-year tenure with the Gators, there were at least 31 arrests. He said his players weren't bad kids, a sign Meyer doesn't have the strongest grasp on proper discipline.

After he left, many people said the players in the program cared more about individual statistics than team goals. That could be seen in the Gators stumbling to 7-6 last season despite their talent.

Meyer, however, is confident the Buckeyes will progress well.

"The quote I'd like out there is I think this team could play and compete with any team in the United States of America as of right now," he said after their 26-21 against Michigan last week. "I didn't say that several weeks ago because we couldn't. We're 12-0. To be 12-0, it really hasn't sunk in yet.

"I'm hoping the guys get the taste and they want to do it again. Because once you taste that, it tastes really good."